The secret to making them super crispy is to "gently half-squash each potato" Jamie says
Without a shadow of a doubt, roast spuds have to be our favourite thing about a Sunday lunch (alongside a homemade apple crumble to follow of course).
There are lots of recipes available to follow online and in cook books for the ultimate roast potatoes but there was one method that particularly caught our eye.
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's 'Best Roast Potato' recipe is a bit different to many we had stumbled across before, so we decided to try it out.
READ MORE: We tried Jamie Oliver's 'easy' Yorkshire pudding recipe and this was the end result
Jamie said on his website: “Simple as roast potatoes are, there’s a handful of tiny, but important, details – picked up throughout my cooking career – that when combined give you this ultimate recipe, which I believe creates the perfect roast potato. What a luxury."
Jamie Oliver's Best Roast Potato recipe (serves 5)
Ingredients
1.25 kg medium Maris Piper potatoes
2 tablespoons goose fat or unsalted butter
Drizzle olive oil
1/2 bulb of garlic
1/4 bunch fresh sage
Method
Get ahead
Peel the potatoes, keeping them whole, and ideally all about the same size (8cm). Parboil them in a pan of boiling salted water for 15 minutes – this will ensure that the insides become really fluffy.
Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for 2 minutes – this will help the fat to stick to the potatoes. Give the colander a few light shakes to chuff up the edges of the potatoes, giving you maximum surface area for a crispy exterior as they roast.
Place the goose fat or butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in your largest roasting tray. Tip in the potatoes, add a good pinch of sea salt and black pepper, then toss to coat, and spread out in one fairly snug, even layer but with small gaps between them.
Cover and pop in the fridge overnight.
On the day
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4.
Squash the garlic bulbs, then lightly crush each unpeeled clove and add to the tray – this gives you sweet, caramelised garlic and adds a gentle perfume to the potatoes.
Roast for 1 hour, or until the potatoes are crisp and golden all over.
Remove the tray from the oven. We’re nearly there, but we’ve got one last application of love and care, which is the game-changer. Gently half-squash each potato with a fish slice or masher so they kind of push into each other and fill the tray.
Pick the sage leaves and – importantly – toss with a little oil (this will transmit the flavour and make them deliciously crisp). Sprinkle the sage over the potatoes and roast for a further 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden and amazing.
217 calories per serving
7.6g fat per serving
Gluten free
Vegan if using dairy free butter
Easy
Meal prep
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Peel the potatoes, keeping them whole, and ideally all about the same size (8cm). Parboil them in a pan of boiling salted water for 15 minutes – this will ensure that the insides become really fluffy. 2. Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for 2 minutes – this will help the fat to stick to the potatoes.
Peel the potatoes, keeping them whole, and ideally all about the same size (8cm). Parboil them in a pan of boiling salted water for 15 minutes – this will ensure that the insides become really fluffy. 2. Drain in a colander and leave to steam dry for 2 minutes – this will help the fat to stick to the potatoes.
Melt the lard in a deep flameproof roasting tray on a high heat and fry the potatoes on each side until they begin to brown. Sprinkle with salt and roast for 30 minutes, or until starting to colour. Turn the potatoes and return to the oven for a further 20-30 minutes, or until golden-brown and crisp.
Carefully add the potatoes to the hot tray along with the garlic and rosemary. Toss to coat in the fat and spread out in a single layer so they cook evenly. Roast for 40-45 minutes, turning every 15 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to serve.
Soaking potatoes in water helps remove excess starch. Excess starch can inhibit the potatoes from cooking evenly as well as creating a gummy or sticky texture on the outside of your potatoes.
In most potato recipes, I recommend starting potatoes in cold water and bringing them up to a boil. This helps ensure that the exteriors don't turn to mush before the insides have a chance to cook through.
Do I have to boil potatoes before roasting? Not necessary but this can help get the perfect consistency and crispiness. Make sure you boil them but leave them a bit al dente and they will crisp up perfectly in the oven.
Parboiling the potatoes is a good start, but if they're not getting crispy during roasting your temperature isn't high enough or there's too much moisture.
Goose fat is one of the first choices for roast potatoes because first of all – it tastes nice! It has a really rich flavour compared to your more common vegetable oils. It's a bit like how cooking your roast potatoes in dripping from your turkey can add more flavour to your spuds too – they're both animal fats.
See how I've beaten them up?' Jamie continued: 'I'm gonna cook these in an oven at about 180/190, which is about 350 Fahrenheit, over the period of about 50 minutes. ' After around 40 minutes of cooking time, the chef took the potatoes out of the oven and used a potato masher to gently press each of the roasties down.
For Gordon's roast potato recipe you'll need: 1.2kg floury potatoes, such as Maris Piper or King Edward. 100g goose or duck fat (or olive oil) 2 tbsp semolina.
TIP: parchment paper is better to prevent sticking, but aluminum foil yields crispier results. If you use foil, you'll want to lightly grease it to prevent the potatoes from sticking. Note that even if you do that, they may still stick.
You should store peeled and cut potatoes in water for 24 hours to ensure the quality of your final product. "If you drain the potatoes and notice they are turning brown, that they've started getting soft, or if they are slimy you should discard them," says Brigman.
Sprinkle your parboiled potatoes with flour. This gives potatoes extra crunch. A tablespoon is all you need! Throw in some whole, unpeeled garlic cloves or a handful of herbs (thyme, sage or rosemary all work well) with the potatoes when adding them to the hot roasting tin.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Take the potatoes out of the fridge and roast for 1 hour, or until the potatoes are crisp and golden all over. 5. Remove the tray from the oven.
If you want to make this roast potatoes day before recipe and keep the potatoes crispy, ensure you put them in hot oil before baking them. This will help the potatoes stay crispy. If you're preparing roast potatoes in advance and find they have gone soggy in the fridge.
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